Buy-back treated as capital gains; authorities directed not to recharacterise pre-existing buy-backs as dividend for tax purposes. Consideration received on buy-back of a company's own shares between 01.04.2000 and 31.05.2013 is to be taxed as capital gains and not as dividend, pursuant to the deeming provision treating such receipts as capital gains and the exclusion of buy-back payments from the definition of dividend; tax authorities are directed not to issue fresh assessment/reassessment or TDS non-deduction notices for such pre-01.06.2013 buy-backs and to complete pending assessments in line with this position.